Hi, Newbie Here

by Iseenow 40 Replies latest jw friends

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  skeeter1

  Do not get baptised.

  I was never baptised and told my family my doubts. While they don't appreciate that I don't appreciate the Truth..they still talk with me and come to visit. I went on to college and had a carreer. I show them every time that I am a good person with a good and happy life. I've publically spoken out against the Truth, and my familly STILL speaks with me. In fact, I am invited to a BBQ at a JWs house that happens to be on July 4th (oh, but it's just a BBQ as eveyone's off from work...lol)! I consider my JW family to have a mental problem - the problem of belonging to a cult.

  My "friends" who were in the Truth no longer speak with me after I did something public against the Truth. Guess blood runs thicker then water. I have new and better friends now. Ones that don't mind if I change my thoughts of the unknown world of the afterlife and our creator.

  So, there it is.

  Welcome. You saved yourself alot of pain by making these decisions early. Imagine if you were married to a JW, working in another brother's business, or had a sick JW child who needed blood.....

  Skeeter
• 

  skeeter1
• 

  Knowsnothing

  Welcome Iseenow!

  It's so great you didn't get baptised. Once you get dunked, there is no going back....

  In my discussion with the elders I had, I also brought up WT vs. Camping. They pretty much stayed quiet on that subject or tryed to change it.

  A good example you can find of false prophecy is to crack any old Awake! magazine (pre 1990 I think) and look in the 2nd or 3rd page.

  Where it says "Why Awake! is published", you can find that it promised that the world would end before the generation that saw the events of 1914 would pass away.

  Go to any newer Awake!, and it changed the wording to say that soon the Creator will end the world soon.

  Stick to your guns, to logic, and never look back! You have your whole life ahead of you. Don't waste in on something you can never believe.
• 

  mummatron

  Hiya!

  I'm also in the UK. I got baptized at 18 because I succumbed to the peer pressure from my fellow JWs. It is the biggest regret of my life because the majority of my JW family will not have any contact with me. I also had doubts and each time I raised them I was met with explanations such as "it's demons at work trying to tempt us away from the truth" and "I don't know but I guess that's something Jehovah will reveal to us in the new system". Those doubts ate away at me and all I saw around me in the congregation was nothing but hypocrites, gossips and a distinct lack of this so called "brotherly/sisterly love". I became inactive at 19 and was eventually disassociated at 21.

  Like the other posters have mentioned, it's worth waiting until you're older before making such a life-changing commitment as baptism because it will affect you somehowfor the rest of your life. After all, at 16 you can't vote, get a credit card or mortgage, marry without parental consent or drive, so you certainly don't have to let anyone pressure you into baptism before you're 18. Even if you do come across as being more mature than many adults! I definitely recommend getting a good education and figuring out what you want to do for 8 hours a day, 5 days a week for the next 50ish years. I'm fortunate that I took A Levels and went to Uni as I've always had my qualifications to fall back on and never had to struggle financially like my parents did.

  I'm sure you'll get good GCSE results as your English writing is articulate and displays good critical thinking. What subjects did you take? I'm nosey as I'm part-way through re-training to become a secondary ICT teacher.

  Mummatron
• 

  Quandry

  Welcome.

  Yes, as others have noted, time is on your side. Do not be made to feel guilty for not getting baptised; if you have questions, then by all means continue asking them. Once a person is baptised, they are not allowed to question! I was "in" for over thirty years and never completed my education. What I wouldn't give to have those years back.

  You have so much to look forward to in life-first and foremost your education, then perhaps work in a field that interests you. Please continue on your good course.
• 

  nugget

  Iseenow welcome to the board.

  The way I look at it is they call themselves "the Truth". Not a truth or modified truth but The Truth. As such they hold themselves to a higher standared than any other faith because they are in effect saying that everything they say is right. They only have to have lied once to lose credibility and they lie many times. Their publications misquote from sources, they use occult authors to support their viewpoint and present them as scientists. They present a history of the society to their members that disagrees with historical fact and they lie to their members about changes they have made in their doctrines. They do not allow anyone to question them that seems at odds with this standard of honesty you have a right to expect. Some of the threads on societies history and publications and JWfacts are a good source of information.

  In Proverbs we are told that god hates lies and liars, how then, can God be supporting and using an organisation that routinely lies?

  As a young person with your life ahead of you the society will make many demands on you and ask you to make many sacrifices in life they need to be worthy of this level of sacrifice. I got out because I realised that the society was robbing my children of a childhood and a future they are happier and stronger because of my decision and I don't regret it. You are old enough to think for yourself so take time there is no rush and no impending doom. Good luck in your search
• 

  Found Sheep

  Welcome!
• 

  satinka

  WELCOME to the forum, Iseenow!

  

  satinka
• 

  Billy the Ex-Bethelite

  Welcome!

  Don't let them guilt you by making it wrong to "doubt" or do outside research. If you were buying a car, you wouldn't just go with the word of the salesperson. It's standard procedure to check all the facts before you buy. Certainly, WT encourages people to critically examine every OTHER religion, but they condemn anyone that would raise a question about them.

  So, they "predicted" the UN? That's already been disproven on threads here. But if he wants to bring up the Daniel's prophecy book, what ever happened with the King of the North? The big DC excitement about the feet of the image completely ignores everything they ever predicted about everything the King of the North was supposed to accomplish in the run-up to the big A.

  It's crazy how they said that they are not prophets... but you sure as hell better treat them like prophets! After the DC with the hoopla about the end coming soon, but the governments are far from destroying religion. It's all self-contradicting because it's a lie.
• 

  jamiebowers

  Welcome to JWN! You're getting out at at the age I was just getting in. Read the literature suggested by everyone on thi thread, and take the advice of not getting baptized. I hope you can help your mom out too, but don't let it get you down if she decides to stay.